Rather than ramping up its purchases from Western allies, Nato’s second-largest military power will direct most of its 229 per cent budget increase between 2027 and 2029 towards expanding domestic production.
Announcing the plan on Sunday, Vice-President Cevdet Yilmaz said the aim was to ensure Turkey “develops its own technologies in the defence industry, can meet its own needs and produces high added value”.
Outlining the rationale behind the increase, Yilmaz added: “Where there is no security, there can be neither development nor democracy. We are shaping our budget accordingly.”
